Service Vital To All Aircraft Sales In The U.S.

NBAA President and CEO Ed Bolen Friday issued a call to action, asking Members to immediately contact their representatives in government and demand the reopening of the FAA Aircraft Registry, based in Oklahoma City, OK. With the FAA’s Aircraft Registry deemed “non-essential” in the government shutdown that began October 1, no one can buy or sell an aircraft in the U.S. until the government is back in business.

“Imagine if no new cars or trucks could be purchased for the duration of the shutdown. This is significant for our industry. Aircraft transactions are the lifeblood of general aviation,” said Bolen. “I’ve heard from a number of dealers and brokers from around the country – small, one – and two-person operations, minority-owned businesses that are calling and saying, ‘We have no revenue coming in the door unless and until that registry in Oklahoma is reopened.’”

During the last government shutdown, which lasted 28 days in 1995 and 1996, the registry remained open. “The impact back then was therefore less significant,” Bolen said. “But this time, there’s an immediate effect. This shutdown is putting livelihoods at stake.”

Not only are aircraft sales impacted, he said, but the registry is fundamental to title and lien searches. “This affects all kinds of businesses,” Bolen added. “We’re talking about financing jobs, training jobs as well as broker-dealer jobs. It’s critical to our manufacturing base, our exports and thousands of small businesses.”

Bolen’s call to action for NBAA Members followed an open letter he earlier sent to President Obama and Congressional Leaders to urge the Administration and Congress to quickly find a way to end the shutdown, or at a minimum conduct a re-evaluation of the criteria for excepted employees Earlier in the week, Bolen detailed the dire consequences the shutdown was having for business aviation at House Small Business Committee roundtable focusing on challenges facing the general aviation community.

As the Association’s legislative team works to communicate the dire nature of the registry shutdown to lawmakers on Capitol Hill, Bolen asked that NBAA Members also make known their concerns. “This is absolutely a call to action,” Bolen said. “Write to members of Congress. Use the NBAA Contact Congress tool. Reach out to the White House. We need to get the registry open.”

Among the concerns is the backlog that will exist at the FAA when the office reopens. GAMA president and CEO Pete Bunce (pictured) said the backlog is building up "every hour" the office is closed. He said GAMA is working with the FAA to determine if there is any flexibility that would allow the office to re-open and get new airplane sales on track.

“The lifeblood of general aviation manufacturers is their ability to bring new safety-enhancing products to market. The government shutdown will interrupt the flow of innovation, as the hundreds of FAA engineers who oversee and certify general aviation products will be sent home," Bunce said in a statement last week. "While there is a compelling need to implement a more streamlined certification process, an indiscriminate government shutdown—which hurts the livelihood of hardworking men and women—is not the way to do it. We hope that lawmakers on both sides of the aisle will recognize this impact, among many others, and move quickly to end the shutdown.”

FMI: www.nbaa.org, www.gama.aero